The invention relates to an irradiating apparatus.
Processes for the treatment of paint coatings, surface structures or printing dyes through the use of electromagnetic radiation are known, whose essential active component lies in the range of near infrared, in particular in the wavelength range between 0.8 μm and 1.5 μm, or in the range of ultraviolet radiation (UV range). With these applications, the creation typically of a relatively large-area radiation zone with high power density in the interests of high productivity of the relevant process is important.
This is from where the use of several stretched-out halogen lamps arranged in parallel with one another, which have a tubular glass body with sockets at the ends with at least one incandescent filament, in a stretched-out reflector as a radiation arrangement for thermal radiation processes is also known. The very high power density values realised with such radiation arrangements above (to some extent far above) 100 kW/m2 require cooling to warrant an adequate useful life of the lamps and the shape stability of the reflector arrangements.
This is why a modular irradiating arrangement with NIR radiation sources and integrated liquid cooling of the reflector is proposed in DE 100 51 641 A1, which goes back to the applicant.
A radiation arrangement for the realisation of processes of the aforementioned nature is known from DE 100 51 642 A1, which has a cooled main reflector, which bears stretched-out halogen lamps, and separate side reflectors arranged at its sides. These are in particular arranged perpendicular to the plane extending through the central axes of the halogen lamps on the main reflector.
A radiation source with stretched-out halogen lamps is known from DE 100 51 905 A1, which also goes back to the application, whose ends are bent towards the glass body and are thickened or narrowed. In a preferred embodiment, coolants for heat dissipation are assigned to the lamp ends, which are supposed to ensure a steep T-gradient between the bent zones of the glass body and the neighbouring electrical terminals. In an even more special embodiment, a compressed air flow duct with outlet openings arranged close to the ends of the glass body is provided for cooling.
In DE 102 57 432 A1, an air-cooled radiation arrangement is proposed, which encompasses a reflector fitted at the rear with cooling fins and a specially designed duct arrangement to guide cooling air supplied by a fan to the rear of the reflector.
The aforementioned radiation sources or radiation apparatus have now proven themselves excellently in diverse applications, achieve long useful lives and supply radiation zones largely with the parameters required by users. Nevertheless, application situations have arisen in which the prerequisites necessary for the use of specific radiation arrangements—for example cooling water or compressed air ports—are not fulfilled. Moreover, upper cost limits are low in certain applications and compliance with them using known designs is problematic.